Rip-stop woven fabrics are commonly used for military and police uniforms and most rip-stop fabrics used for police and military uniforms are made in blends of polyester/cotton, cotton/polyester, and nylon/cotton. The strength, ease of care, and fade-resistance properties of rip-stop fabrics for police and military uniforms have been enhanced by this blending of polyester or nylon with cotton. Stain and water resistant finishes can be applied to the fabrics to further improve durability and ease of care.
A key requirement for rip-stop fabrics used for police and military uniforms is for them to be able to withstand 50+ washes and extensive field used while still delivering comfort to the wearer. Therefore, durability and comfort become the two most important attributes of these fabrics.
A very popular way to add comfort to a fabric is by adding stretch. Commonly, stretch has been added to fabrics by using elastic fibers, such as spandex or elastane fibers. Spandex fibers present technical challenges when used in fabrics with a polyester content higher than 40%, because spandex fiber degrades during the dyeing process as the polyester is dyed at higher temperatures than cotton or other cellulosic-based materials. In addition, spandex fibers can further degrade when stain repellant finishes are added to the fabric as they are heat-set during the finishing stage.
Further, the extensive washing cycles that police and military uniforms go through further degrade the spandex in fabric, reducing the usable life of the fabric. As a result, all the rip-stop fabrics made for police and military uniforms today that are made in polyester/cotton or nylon/cotton blends do not offer stretch properties.